The Race
by Duskflight of NightClan
Summary: The original four Clans are destroyed, obliterated by a mysterious sickness and a vicious group of rogues. Only a handful of survivors are left. When Ravenstorm, their leader and former ShadowClan deputy, receives a mysterious prophecy about her cats, she also learns she must lead them to a place called "SkyClan." Will the Survivors make it to SkyClan?
1. Allegiances

**Allegiances**

The Survivors

Ravenstorm - black she-cat with one white paw and yellow eyes, formerly of ShadowClan

Foxpelt - ginger tom with dark brown legs and green eyes, formerly of RiverClan

Wolfblaze - silver gray tom with a black tail tip and blue eyes, formerly of WindClan

Snowheart - small white she-cat with pale gray paws and amber eyes, formerly of ShadowClan

Rainsplash - mottled brown she-cat with blue eyes, formerly of ThunderClan

Blizzardpelt - white tom with yellow eyes, formerly of ThunderClan

Dustfoot - brown tabby tom with green eyes, formerly of RiverClan

Darkpaw - black tom with pale amber eyes, formerly of WindClan

Stonepaw - gray and white she-cat with green eyes, formerly of WindClan

Ashpaw - gray tom with yellow eyes, formerly of ShadowClan

The Pack

Leader - Flame - huge ginger tom with amber eyes

Second In Command - Shade - skinny black she-cat

Healer - Marsh - speckled gray-brown tom

Guards

Lion - golden tabby tom with leafy green eyes

Hawk - dark brown tabby she-cat with a white belly and green eyes

Dew - pale gray tom

Rose - long-legged cream colored she-cat

Amber - tabby and white she-cat

Rocky - big dark gray tom with blue eyes

Hunters

Cloud - pale gray tom with white speckles

Shadow - black she-cat with pale amber eyes

Moss - tortoiseshell she-cat with very long fur

Stream - black and white she-cat

Oak - brown tom

Kit-Watchers

Maple - tortoiseshell she-cat with white patches, mother of Dew's kits: Gleam and Sand

Silver - silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes, expecting Cloud's kits

SkyClan

Leader: Nightstar - black she-cat with yellow eyes

Deputy: Stormfall - dark gray tabby she-cat with black stripes

Medicine Cat: Ashpelt - pale gray and white tom with blue eyes

Apprentice, Sorrelpaw

Warriors

Redfrost - bright ginger tom with white paws

Hollybreeze - tortoiseshell she-cat

Snowtooth - big white tom

Apprentice, Cloudpaw

Lightningclaw - golden tabby tom with dark amber eyes

Emberfang - dark ginger tom with green eyes

Willowflight - silver-gray tabby she-cat

Apprentice, Tanglepaw

Dawnstorm - pale brown tabby she-cat with white patches

Sootwing - dark gray she-cat with a white muzzle and white paws

Cinderblaze - dark gray she-cat

Brambleshade - dark brown tabby tom

Thornstrike - golden brown tom

Apprentices

Sorrelpaw - small tortoiseshell she-cat

Cloudpaw - pure white tom

Tanglepaw - brown tabby tom with a spiky, tangled pelt

Queens

Mistycloud - blue-gray she-cat with white patches, mother of Snowtooth's kits: Tigerkit, Smokekit, and Russetkit

Featherheart - black she-cat, expecting Redfrost's kits

Elders

Clovershade - very old brown tom

Finchfeather - ginger tabby tom


	2. Chapter One - Escape

A thin black she-cat sat on top of a tall gray boulder, overlooking a beautiful lake. In fact, that lake was where her former home rested. She sighed as she spotted her beloved pine trees, now so empty.

"Ravenstorm!" A ginger tom bounded up to join the gloomy cat on her perch. A slight breeze ruffled his thick ginger pelt, and he shuffled his brown paws uncomfortably. "If we want to stay ahead of Flame and the Pack, we'd better get moving," he meowed carefully, knowing Ravenstorm's pride in her Clan and deep sorrow at leaving her home. She turned her piercing yellow gaze to the ginger tom, a bit more eager than before.

"Alright, Foxpelt. I'm coming." The sleek black she-cat picked her way down the rock, joining the other survivors. The Plague and the attacks had obliterated the Clans, and StarClan seemed to be watching out for these lucky cats.

Foxpelt and Ravenstorm met up with the other Clan cats. Ashpaw, Darkpaw, and Stonepaw were sharing a vole, the last bit of prey from the lake. Ashpaw glanced up and bounded over to touch noses with his mentor. Ravenstorm gladly accepted the greeting and turned to her ragtag group.

"Let's get going!" she yowled, casting a regretful, wistful glance back at the tiny sliver of glimmering water she could still see.

* * *

Dusk arrived more swiftly than the travelers had originally thought. A chilled wind promised the coming of a tempest, and Ravenstorm could feel Snowheart shudder in fear beside her.

Mustering up the last of what precious energy she had left, Ravenstorm scraped together a makeshift nest of dry grass and settled beside Rainsplash and Dustfoot. Wearily, she closed her eyes, the image of Blizzardpelt guarding the cats becoming a white blur, and then blackness.

* * *

Ravenstorm awoke in a hazy, misty forest. The trees here had dark gray bark, something the former ShadowClan deputy had not thought was possible. A tiny, fearful mew echoed throughout the mysterious forest, the mew of a moon-old kit. A tiny golden kit crawled toward her, letting out those same mews in distress. It was bone-thin, every rib showing through its thin pelt.

Ravenstorm reached down to lap comfortingly at its fur, but before she could do so, she leapt back in surprise.

The kit had started to grow, a friendly purr transforming into a ferocious snarl. It was no longer a starving kit, but a very angry lion. It leaned in close, breath stirring her ear fur.

"A brain dead enemy shall fall from power, yet another will rise. The dark one will break the sacred promise, and all will shatter. The roar of your enemy will leave you quaking in fear, and the endless race will be done."

* * *

"Attack! Attack!"

The voice belonged to Wolfblaze, screeching in pain and fury as he was pounced on by a Pack Guard she knew as Hawk. The big gray tom managed to topple over the tabby she-cat and fled along with the other Survivors.

A golden tom was hard on Ravenstorm's paws and hot breath blew on her leg fur. She lashed out with her back paws and the tom screeched furiously. Her legs hurt by the time they'd escaped the Pack.

In fact, that's what they needed to do.

Escape.

Escape.

Escape.


	3. Chapter Two - Hunt

**Wow, super sorry for the wait! Things were happening in real life and I honestly completely forgot about my stories.**

* * *

Ravenstorm eyed Darkpaw distrustfully, narrowing her yellow gaze behind his back. Darkpaw would be the one to break this so-called sacred promise, she was sure. For StarClan's sake, it was in his name!

"Are you okay?" The rumbling voice of the ThunderClan tom Blizzardpelt startled her, the early sunrise light gleaming off his snowy-white pelt. She swiftly licked her chest fur to hide her embarrassment at being caugoff guard.

"Er, yeah Blizzardpelt, I'm fine," she mumbled, casting a glance at the three apprentices, who were tumbling around in the dirt.

"Are you sure? You've had one eye on Darkpaw since we escaped the Pack." Great StarClan, this cat was nosy.

"I've kept an eye on all of the apprentices," Ravenstorm snapped, turning her back to the white warrior and beginning to wash a paw. Blizzardpelt tried to speak again, but after a quiet hiss from Ravenstorm he padded away to chat with Rainsplash, his sister.

Ravenstorm slowly rose to her paws and stretched her aching muscles, sore from the long run. The wound she'd received on her back leg from Lion did not help matters, and she wondered why StarClan couldn't have spared at least one medicine cat.

"C'mon, we better get going," she announced, loud enough for everyone to hear and giving Wolfblaze quite a rude awakening. He groaned and tried to roll over, but thankfully Foxpelt was there to nip the sleeping warrior awake.

The former deputy led the group even further away from the lake. Already, Stonepaw and Ashpaw were complaining of the cold. Dustfoot quieted them with a snarl, but Ravenstorm could still catch their irritated grumbles. Honestly, Ravenstorm couldn't blame them. The storm that had been promised on the wind seemed to be heading towards the travelers.

"Let's stop and hunt for awhile, before this rain comes," meowed Ravenstorm, shivering while ominous storm clouds drifted menacingly across the sky. "Meet back here at this boulder once you've caught your prey, and the apprentices must hunt with a warrior." Despite the whines and grumbles, Darkpaw went with Wolfblaze, Stonepaw with Snowheart, and Ashpaw with Rainsplash.

Ravenstorm plunged into the quivering golden grass, carefully tracking a rabbit scent. It trailed on into a dense forest and at last she caught sight of the puffy white tail. She lowered into a deep crouch and, pawstep by pawstep, inched towards her prey. She tensed her muscles and lunged, claws outstretched. The black she-cat cut off its shriek with a swift, merciful bite to the throat. The gray-brown creature went limp and Ravenstorm licked her muzzle free from the still-warm blood. She snatched up its furry scruff in her teeth and began to haul it back to the rendezvous point for the Survivors.

She stumbled clumsily through the thick forest, rabbit fur nearly choking her. The forest seemed faintly familiar, and oddly enough there was ThunderClan scent everywhere. Blizzardpelt or Rainsplash must've come through here, she concluded, carrying on her way. But why was the scent so strong?

When Ravenstorm spotted where the scent was coming from, she let put a muffled shriek and dropped the rabbit in horror. Amberstar of ThunderClan, Smokestar of ShadowClan, Larkstar of WindClan, and Pebblestar of RiverClan were sitting there in broad daylight, looking like they hadn't heard Ravenstorm's shock yowl.

"We lost Dewfur and Moleclaw to the Plague today," sighed Amberstar, her amber eyes darkening with grief. "My brother and mentor."

Smokestar dipped his head. "They were fine warriors. StarClan will welcome them warmly," the dark gray tom consoled. "Tigerheart, Ivytail, and Pinenose were also murdered by the Pack. We have very few warriors left: Crowfrost, Ravenstorm, Snowheart, and one apprentice, Ashpaw."

Pebblestar's eyes darkened. The ragged, elderly gray tom laid down. "RiverClan isn't doing much better, either. I am on my ninth life, and my deputy is close to death. We only have a few warriors still fit and standing."

Larkstar shook her head uncertainly. "Only my deputy, Wolfblaze, and a small pawful of other cats remain. I fear this may be the end of the Clans."

Amberstar rose to her paws. "One of the elders, Sandstorm, told me a tale when I was a kit. She claimed that long ago, in the old forest, there were five Clans. The fifth Clan, SkyClan, was driven out long ago. She and Firestar had journeyed to where they had finally died out and reunited the Clan."

"Impossible," scoffed Pebblestar and Smokestar at the same time.

"No, it could be true," snapped Larkstar. "I was told the same tale as a kit."

"Unless whoever is still standing after this mess is over can find SkyClan, no one will survive," meowed Smokestar grimly.

"Until then, it is the end of the four Clans. I know RiverClan will not survive as RiverClan for much longer. They must join SkyClan to keep our legacy alive," agreed Pebblestar.

"ThunderClan, I fear, is also dying, and will be dead soon," whispered Amberstar, trembling with grief and fury.

"As is WindClan," mewed Larkstar.

Smokestar's tail swished back and forth, deep concentration in his eyes. He finally gazed upwards at the sky, snarling in fury.

"Is this how you treat us? After all these moons, suddenly deciding we're not good enough? Is that why you're killing us off so quickly?" he roared, venom dripping in his voice. Smokestar whipped around to face the other Clan leaders, face twisted in rage.

"ShadowClan is dead. This is the end of the four Clans of the forest. StarClan have mercy on the few survivors," he spat and raced away.

Amberstar, Larkstar, and Pebblestar vanished into mist. Ravenstorm's wounded back leg struck her with a pain so sharp she saw stars and blacked out.

* * *

**To clarify, Amberstar, Larkstar, Smokestar, and Pebblestar are the same cats as Amberkit, Larkpaw, Smokefoot, and Pebblefokt from the series. I only realized after I finished writing this that they were all gray cats but meh, who cares.**


	4. Chapter Three - Loners

**I feel really bad about not updating so here is the other chapter I had ready. It is a little short, sorry.**

* * *

"Hey, it's a cat!"

"No duh, genius!"

"Stop being mean to me, Jack!"

"Stop being annoying, Mushroom!"

Two bickering voices drew Ravenstorm out of her deep rest. Her leg dully ached and she stirred to make the stupid piece of fur comfortable.

"Jack, run! He's getting up!"

"I think he's a she-cat, you idiot."

Feebly, the former ShadowClan deputy eased herself to her paws. Two young toms stood before her, giving her odd looks. One cat had thick golden-brown fur and dark amber eyes. He was skinny, long-legged, and appeared in need of a good meal. The other tom had cream fur patched with brown. He had warm green eyes and was rather small, but well-fed. The little tom didn't appear much older than an apprentice.

"Greetings," she rasped suspiciously, unsheathing her long claws. The cream and brown tom shank away fearfully, but the taller cat stepped forward calmly.

"Greetings," he meowed back, a mischievous gleam in his eyes that Ravenstorm didn't quite trust. "I'm Jack, and this furball of a cat over here is Mushroom. We're just travelers. Hey, mind sharing that rabbit you've got over there?"

Ravenstorm glanced over her shoulder at the gray-brown lump of fur, which she'd all but forgotten about. The realization hit her like a claw to the throat.

"Oh StarClan, how long have I been out?" she mewed frantically to Jack. Jack shrugged his skinny brown shoulders.

"I dunno. We just found ya here a bit ago," he meowed, amber gaze still trained on the rabbit. Ravenstorm shook her head in exasperation and started towards the rabbit. "I have to go."

"Ooh! Ooh! Can we come? Please?" Mushroom pleaded, racing up to her. Jack sighed and sat down, looking embarrassed. Ravenstorm's gaze sparkled with amusement and she agreed, much to the annoyance of Mushroom's companion. While walking briskly towards the Survivors rendezvous point, she learned the two loners' story. Jack was Mushroom's older brother, as Mushroom had been from a more recent litter. Jack broke off to start a new life, and Mushroom had tagged along due to admiration of his sibling.

Ravenstorm purred softly around the rabbit scruff, twitching her whiskers in amusement. Mushroom seemed to have little to no idea how annoyed his older brother was at him.

The large silver boulder finally came into sight, along with the furiously pounding rain. A dark tabby shape dashed up to her, rubbing its muzzle along her cheek in relief. A few other cats followed him up to their leader.

"Thank StarClan, Ravenstorm! You've been missing since sunhigh! Where in StarClan's name have you been?" meowed Dustfoot, voice beginning with relief and ending in a furious snarl. "And who-" The dark tabby tom gestured with his tail at the two loners. "Are they?"

"Their names are Mushroom and Jack," calmly explained Ravenstorm. "They'll be coming with us to SkyClan."

"Against my will, I might add," muttered Jack, shooting an irritated glare at Mushroom. The cream and brown tom ducked shyly away, scooting farther away from the bigger cat.

"Very well," meowed Dustfoot coldly. Nearly everyone knew of the RiverClan tom's stubborn hatred of non-Clan cats. "I sent Foxpelt, Snowheart, and Wolfblaze out looking for you. They should be back soon."

As if on cue, the small patrol burst into sight, panting heavily with their fur fluffed up against the chill.

"I'm sorry Dustfoot, we couldn't find her and we got chased by a fox-" Snowheart stopped mid-sentence when she saw the small black cat standing there, alive and well. "Of course," she grumbled and licked her snowy-white chest fur awkwardly.

"Sorry, Snowheart. I'll explain later. For now, we should eat and get going." She bent down to hungrily tear into the flesh of the rabbit. After the first meaty bite, she invited the two loners in to share. _Welcome to our Clan,_ she thought.

* * *

**Whoever can guess first which character I based Jack on will be able to have their OC in the story! Just something fun to do ;D**


	5. Chapter Four - Night

**Hey guys, don't be expecting too many updates from me. For the next two weeks I have camp. To add to that, I just found out my favorite musical will be going off Broadway and that hit me quite hard :(**

* * *

"Rrrroawrrrrr!" It was pitch dark. Ravenstorm couldn't see her own nose, let alone what was ahead of her. There were thorn-sharp claws snagged deep in her pelt, ripping at her flesh. Furious as she was, the small she-cat was utterly defenseless as her blood pooled on the ground. The claws were torn away, ripping apart some of her thin black fur. An unfamiliar cat had her attacker at bay.

"Ravenstorm!" A hazy voice howled her name, filled with grief. A scent that was vaguely familiar engulfed her. Ravenstorm couldn't quite put her claw on who it was. They rubbed their muzzle along hers and seemed to lunge at the cat who had attacked her.

"N-No!" she cried.

* * *

"Ravenstorm! Hey, Ravenstorm! It's nearly sunhigh!"

"Urnngghh, go away Blizzardpelt," she groaned, rolling over and nearly squashing an also-slumbering Stonepaw.

"What, going to become Wolfblaze?" he purred, jabbing her with a paw. She glanced up into his yellow gaze, which was glimmering with amusement. With amusement, she poked him right back and scrambled up.

"I'll wake up Stonepaw, you go join the others. Tell them I'll be right there," she mewed, swiftly grooming her pelt. He padded away, leaving a faint trail of muddy pawprints behind him.

The black she-cat glanced over at the sleeping apprentice. Her gray muzzle was tucked firmly into her bushy tail, one white paw sticking carelessly out and twitching rapidly. Stonepaw's flanks were rising and falling frantically. Nightmare.

"C'mon Stonepaw, up. Time to go," she mewed gently in her white-tipped ears. She sharply sat up, panting frantically with her green eyes wide.

"Thank StarClan, it's just you. I had this really weird, scary dream..." she murmured, gazing off into the distance. Ravenstorm nudged her to her paws and guided her towards the group. She seemed to have woken up and was bright-eyed and eager as always. Shaking her head in a good-natured manner, she took her usual spot at the front of the group. Giving her sleep-laden muscles one final stretch, she placed one paw in front of the other and began the usual routine.

"Hey, I'm confused. If your home was so wonderful and amazin', then why'd you leave?" A flash of golden-brown pelt entered the corner of her eye and suddenly Jack was walking beside her, eyes round and curious. She turned her gaze to meet his amber eyes.

"Well, it's...hard to explain, but we were attacked," she began tensely. Jack was just a rogue, why did he need to know? "But hey, why is it any of your business?" she growled, the hair lifting along her spine. She was aware of Blizzardpelt bounding up to separate them.

"Ravenstorm, relax, it was just a quest-"

"Shut up!"

"You're overreacting!"

"Since when are you one to defend rogues?"

"Since they started traveling with us!"

Ravenstorm huffed and continued walking toward SkyClan, head lowered, hackles raised, and eyes narrowed. Blizzardpelt calmly explained the situation to both the newcomers, only adding to her mood.

Why did I get so angry? Oh well, it was none of his business anyway, she growled inside her head.

* * *

The black she-cat's long tail swayed ever so slightly behind her. The stars glimmered on her coarse fur as she pounced on her unsuspecting prey. It shrieked briefly in terror as Ravenstorm's jaws locked around the squirrel's throat. The furry gray body went limp in her grip and she carried it calmly away.

There was no moonlight to show her the path and no wind to bring her far-off scents. The only comfort was the faint rustle of mice and other small, tasty creatures in the unusually thick undergrowth. Other than that, complete and utter silence. The squirrel fell to the forest floor accidentally with a thud, and Ravenstorm stooped down to scoop it up. She stopped midway.

"Did you hear that?"

Huh?

"No, what?"

"Nothing. I'd better go."

"Okay. See you in a quarter moon."

Ravenstorm snorted, yellow eyes beginning to spark with mischief. She didn't bother to pay attention to the voices, and quite frankly didn't care who it was. She scraped her claws loudly, menacingly, and slowly on the bark of the nearest tree. The two cats panicked and scrambled away, from the sound of it. Chuckling quietly, she continued on her way, but made sure to take the long way around in case there might be an angry pair of rogues wanting revenge.

_Now that I think about it, that tom's voice did sound familiar. Ah, must be my head. After all, it is just past moonhigh and I've barely slept in the past two days. To add to that, I'm so hungry I might chew my own paw off and eat it._

_Yes. Just my ears._


End file.
